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UK architects said to be frontrunner for $12bn Jeddah Metro

Foster + Partners reportedly set to design all 46 stations of the new transport system in Saudi Arabia

(Photo for illustrative purposes only)

By Staff writer

Tue 07 Oct 2014 03:11 PM

British architecture firm Foster + Partners is reportedly the frontrunner to design all 46 stations of the new $12bn Jeddah Metro in Saudi Arabia.

The Architects’ Journal reported that the practice headed by Lord Norman Foster could earn a commission of up to $100 million in fees for the work.

In July french consultancy firm Systra won a $73.6 million contract to provide preliminary engineering designs for the Jeddah Metro project, while two months earlier Aecom landed a contract to do preliminary planning and design work.

The project is being developed by Jeddah Metro Co: a joint venture between the Municipality and Jeddah Urban Regeneration Co.

It is set to implement a proper integrated transport mega-project that will include metro, tram and commuter rail elements with a combined length of 293km, a 750km-long bus system with more than 3,000 stops, ferries and taxis.

In August Sama Ibrahim Abdu, CEO of Jeddah Metro, revealed that the project will not be ready for public use until 2022 – two years after construction has finished.

The metro will go into service after a series of safety tests are conducted in the months after the project is set to be handed over in 2020.

Jeddah's metro project is aiming to take on 30 percent of the city's commuter flow in 20 years. Abdu said policies will be rolled out that seek to support and encourage the use of public transportation. At present, public transportation accounts for only 1-2 percent of commuters in Jeddah.